The Wild Tenant
by Lucy Gough, directed by Lucy Gough and Angharad Lee, Welsh tour, 2024.
"The Wild Tenant incorporates moments of humour delicately intertwined with its darker themes. One standout moment for me was Heledd’s journey towards rediscovering her creative instincts, which had long been stifled by her partner. Her progress in creating a painting throughout the play symbolises her resilience in overcoming suppression and negativity, a storyline that resonated deeply with me. On the other hand, Hunter’s attempts to control Heledd demonstrate a character spiralling out of control as the narrative unfolds, often deceiving the audience with his manipulative behaviour. Thankfully, Heledd realizes she must no longer be a tenant in Hunter’s dreams and instead finds the strength to pursue her own purpose while offering empathy and guidance to the addict in finding his own path. Bella Merlin as Heledd and Jams Thomas as Hunter deliver powerful performances that evoke a range of emotions for the onlooker. I was deeply moved by the actors’ portrayals of the play’s themes, which resonated with my personal experiences."
Andy Howell, Entertainment South Wales
A Body of Water
by Lee Blessing, directed by James Warwick at Shakespeare & Company, Lenox, MA, 2024
"As Avis, Merlin doesn't miss a trick. She delivers a buoyant, thoroughly engaging portrayal of a woman who is totally at the mercy of a situation that is beyond her reckoning. Her Avis is, by turns, vulnerable, childlike, womanly. In one absolute gem of a moment, laughter slips seamlessly into tears as she is overwhelmed by her situation." - Berkshire Eagle
“...Bella Merlin has enormous range, playing every note of her instrument...” -Berkshire On Stage
“...Merlin and O’Rourke are so good together...” -Berkshire On Stage
“...both Merlin and O’Rourke are the real deal...” -In The Spotlight
Henry VI Part 2 (The Contention)
by William Shakespeare, directed by Tina Packer at Shakespeare & Company, Lenox, MA, 2023.
'Tina Packer has staged one of William Shakespeare’s earliest plays and given it a first-class production that, in turn, gives the play a first-class interpretation by a group of actors, 10 of them, who are the finest in the company... Bella Merlin (playing six roles) ...gives one of her finest stellar performances. She is beautiful, emotionally moving, and remarkably riveting as she descends the ladder of personal importance in her arena. Later, she plays a sea captain, several rebels, and a swordsman with equal effectiveness. This is a triumph for the actress.' J. Peter Bergman, Berkshire Edge.
'The production of The Contention (Henry VI, Part II) underscores the artistic and creative essence of Shakespeare & Company... Under the direction of Tina Packer, with associate directors Kate Kohler Amory and Sheila Bandyopadhy, there is palpable demonstration of a company, in every sense, and players who have worked together for many years... Kudos in particular to the versatile and brilliant Bella Merlin who portrays an unhinged woman in the first act then a juggler’s trick of five male roles in the second. It’s flat out brilliant.' Charles Giuliano, Berkshire Fine Arts Review.
Nell Gwynne:
A Dramatick Essaye on Acting and Prostitution
by Bella Merlin, directed by Miles Anderson at the Ruby Theatre, Hollywood Fringe Festival 2015.
'Merlin's turn is a tremendous tour de force of humor, emotion, and wit. Impeccably researched and lithely staged in director Miles Anderson's crisp, energetic production...It's a spicy, droll, and ultimately rather sad solo show...anchored by Merlin's wonderfully accessible turn as Nell, who seems almost magically full of life." Paul Birchall, Stage Raw, LA Weekly
"[In] this remarkable piece...[with] her excellent director Miles Anderson... Not only does this entertainment entertain - as Gwynne, Merlin speaks the speech, plays the lute, capers to lascivious pleasing, sings, impersonates, and charms utterly... Go see if you can name one [show] to top it..." Jason Rohrer, Bitter Lemons
"the audience is swept up in Merlin’s bravado performance from the moment she steps out on stage, rattling merrily on about her life’s journey that took her from poor country girl, to star of the London stage, and finally to the bed of England’s King... this is not a history lesson, this is just fun. Great fun at that." Ernest Kearney, theTVolution.com
"we're fascinated by her shrewd intelligence, her wit, and the ironic fatalism with which she greets life's vicissiitudes. And her passion: Merlin gives us a Nell who is first and foremost an artist, dedicated for all her brief life to the theatre." Mark @ Theatre Ghost
A Dramatick Essaye on Acting and Prostitution
by Bella Merlin, directed by Miles Anderson at the Ruby Theatre, Hollywood Fringe Festival 2015.
'Merlin's turn is a tremendous tour de force of humor, emotion, and wit. Impeccably researched and lithely staged in director Miles Anderson's crisp, energetic production...It's a spicy, droll, and ultimately rather sad solo show...anchored by Merlin's wonderfully accessible turn as Nell, who seems almost magically full of life." Paul Birchall, Stage Raw, LA Weekly
"[In] this remarkable piece...[with] her excellent director Miles Anderson... Not only does this entertainment entertain - as Gwynne, Merlin speaks the speech, plays the lute, capers to lascivious pleasing, sings, impersonates, and charms utterly... Go see if you can name one [show] to top it..." Jason Rohrer, Bitter Lemons
"the audience is swept up in Merlin’s bravado performance from the moment she steps out on stage, rattling merrily on about her life’s journey that took her from poor country girl, to star of the London stage, and finally to the bed of England’s King... this is not a history lesson, this is just fun. Great fun at that." Ernest Kearney, theTVolution.com
"we're fascinated by her shrewd intelligence, her wit, and the ironic fatalism with which she greets life's vicissiitudes. And her passion: Merlin gives us a Nell who is first and foremost an artist, dedicated for all her brief life to the theatre." Mark @ Theatre Ghost
Richard III
by William Shakespeare, directed by Tina Packer at the Colorado Shakespeare Festival, 2012
'"Richard III" is a play awash with oaths, lamentations, curses. Some of the darkest are uttered by Henry VI's widow, Queen Margaret, played by an impressively vivid Bella Merlin.' (Lisa Johns, Denver Post)
'the deliciously named Bella Merlin appears early on as the widow Queen Margaret to warn the rest of the women-folk of Richard’s treacheries, both past and future. Ms. Merlin captivated the audience each and every time she took the stage with her raving yet laser-focused Margaret.' (Gary Zeidner, Boulder Weekly Newspaper, Colorado)
'One of the dialectics that makes Richard III such a compelling drama is the contrast between Richard's mysogyny and the strong women that populate this tale. This begins with Margaret (Bella Merlin), widow of King Henry VI (Edward IV's predecessor). Margaret is the only royal that matches Richard's linguistic command, and Merlin exudes vituperative pleasure and emphatic physicality as she delivers the former queen's condemnations of Richard and his depraved plots.' (Bob Bows: ColoradoDrama.com)
'"Richard III" is a play awash with oaths, lamentations, curses. Some of the darkest are uttered by Henry VI's widow, Queen Margaret, played by an impressively vivid Bella Merlin.' (Lisa Johns, Denver Post)
'the deliciously named Bella Merlin appears early on as the widow Queen Margaret to warn the rest of the women-folk of Richard’s treacheries, both past and future. Ms. Merlin captivated the audience each and every time she took the stage with her raving yet laser-focused Margaret.' (Gary Zeidner, Boulder Weekly Newspaper, Colorado)
'One of the dialectics that makes Richard III such a compelling drama is the contrast between Richard's mysogyny and the strong women that populate this tale. This begins with Margaret (Bella Merlin), widow of King Henry VI (Edward IV's predecessor). Margaret is the only royal that matches Richard's linguistic command, and Merlin exudes vituperative pleasure and emphatic physicality as she delivers the former queen's condemnations of Richard and his depraved plots.' (Bob Bows: ColoradoDrama.com)
The Permanent Way
by David Hare, directed by Max Stafford-Clark (Out of Joint/Royal National Theatre)
'Bella Merlin was absolutely amazing, and there was on the night I was in the theatre a collective gasp and the man next to me looked as if he was going to cry... She had been very self-possessed, very amazing and suddenly...her voice cracked and actually I think everyone in the audience imagined what they would've felt if it had been them. What more can you want from the theatre, God?' (Esther Freud, Saturday Review, Radio 4)
'Bella Merlin…speaks with devastating emotional impact…’ (Nicholas de Jongh, The Standard)
‘Bella Merlin [is]…deeply affecting’ (Charles Spencer, Daily Telegraph)
(Re: the Bereaved Mothers:) ‘You could hear a pin drop as the audience holds its collective breath…’ (Mark Shenton, Sunday Express)
‘In a fine ensemble…Bella Merlin and Flaminia Cinque are touching as grieving mothers in search of apologies…’ (Ian Johns, The Times)
‘No praise is too high for the actor-researchers…’ (Michael Billington, The Guardian)
'Bella Merlin was absolutely amazing, and there was on the night I was in the theatre a collective gasp and the man next to me looked as if he was going to cry... She had been very self-possessed, very amazing and suddenly...her voice cracked and actually I think everyone in the audience imagined what they would've felt if it had been them. What more can you want from the theatre, God?' (Esther Freud, Saturday Review, Radio 4)
'Bella Merlin…speaks with devastating emotional impact…’ (Nicholas de Jongh, The Standard)
‘Bella Merlin [is]…deeply affecting’ (Charles Spencer, Daily Telegraph)
(Re: the Bereaved Mothers:) ‘You could hear a pin drop as the audience holds its collective breath…’ (Mark Shenton, Sunday Express)
‘In a fine ensemble…Bella Merlin and Flaminia Cinque are touching as grieving mothers in search of apologies…’ (Ian Johns, The Times)
‘No praise is too high for the actor-researchers…’ (Michael Billington, The Guardian)
Tilly No-Body: Catastrophes of Love
THE DAVIS ENTERPRISE WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2010
Resurrected soul Exhilarating play explores the nature of acting, identity
By Bev Sykes
The magic begins the moment one enters the Mondavi Center’s Vanderhoef Studio Theatre, where set designer John Iacovelli has created an old-style circus ring, with a tent suggested by hanging lights. Composer/sound designer David Roesner’s jazzy music fills the air, and the lid of a large trunk opens. A woman emerges, dressed from head to toe in fur, and so begins “Tilly No-Body: Catastrophes of Love.” This one-act play in 20 “attractions” (as each section is called) is devised by actor, writer and UC Davis acting professor Bella Merlin. She performs the role of Tilly, wife of Frank Wedekind, perhaps best known to today’s audiences as the German dramaitist who wrote the 1891 play “Spring Awakening,” on which the Tony Award-winning musical was based.
Bella Merlin stars as the title character in “Tilly No-Body: Catastrophes of Love,” a performer whose very life was sublimated by the complicated relationship with her husband, German playwright Frank Wedekind... Watching the talented Merlin at work is a privilege. She’s a consummate performer: Under Miles Anderson’s direction, she thoroughly embodies the character of Tilly...
Costumes play a huge role in this production, and costumer Maggie Morgan has done a masterful job with the layers of Tilly’s wardrobe. A voluminous fur coat, for example, is removed to reveal a stunning ringmaster’s costume... Pieces of costume emerge from odd places, and one costume morphs into something completely different...
The mood is greatly enhanced by Thomas J. Munn’s lighting design: long shadows and mood lighting that are as much a “character” as Tilly herself...
“Without work, actors are lost souls,” Merlin writes, in the program notes. “Without a play, we have no voice. Without a character to perform, we have no body.” In “Tilly No Body,” Merlin gives Tilly Wedekind a body again: The result is entertaining, informative and utterly delightful.
Resurrected soul Exhilarating play explores the nature of acting, identity
By Bev Sykes
The magic begins the moment one enters the Mondavi Center’s Vanderhoef Studio Theatre, where set designer John Iacovelli has created an old-style circus ring, with a tent suggested by hanging lights. Composer/sound designer David Roesner’s jazzy music fills the air, and the lid of a large trunk opens. A woman emerges, dressed from head to toe in fur, and so begins “Tilly No-Body: Catastrophes of Love.” This one-act play in 20 “attractions” (as each section is called) is devised by actor, writer and UC Davis acting professor Bella Merlin. She performs the role of Tilly, wife of Frank Wedekind, perhaps best known to today’s audiences as the German dramaitist who wrote the 1891 play “Spring Awakening,” on which the Tony Award-winning musical was based.
Bella Merlin stars as the title character in “Tilly No-Body: Catastrophes of Love,” a performer whose very life was sublimated by the complicated relationship with her husband, German playwright Frank Wedekind... Watching the talented Merlin at work is a privilege. She’s a consummate performer: Under Miles Anderson’s direction, she thoroughly embodies the character of Tilly...
Costumes play a huge role in this production, and costumer Maggie Morgan has done a masterful job with the layers of Tilly’s wardrobe. A voluminous fur coat, for example, is removed to reveal a stunning ringmaster’s costume... Pieces of costume emerge from odd places, and one costume morphs into something completely different...
The mood is greatly enhanced by Thomas J. Munn’s lighting design: long shadows and mood lighting that are as much a “character” as Tilly herself...
“Without work, actors are lost souls,” Merlin writes, in the program notes. “Without a play, we have no voice. Without a character to perform, we have no body.” In “Tilly No Body,” Merlin gives Tilly Wedekind a body again: The result is entertaining, informative and utterly delightful.